12 Tiny Things

What does it mean to “nourish our roots?” That question could be answered in myriad ways, but one constant is that to effectively nourish, said ‘nourishment’ must often be ingested in small bites. When I water the garden in the summer, the plants do much better when I give them a steady, small stream of water over time rather than if I just dump a whole bucket on at once. And interestingly (and not surprisingly) when I meditate I get a lot more out of five minutes than I do out of an hour. Because when I try to do an hour? It doesn’t last. But five minutes? That I can handle, even days at a time. Tiny doesn’t have to mean insignificant. Tiny can actually mean commitment and impact, if we let small things be enough. Because when enough builds, we find that we have a strong root system. A foundation that won’t crumble. A sustainable way of operating in the world. Less overwhelm in a culture that often feels out of control.

Our culture tells us that bigger is better; more is always desirable; it’s all or nothing. But when we look under the rug, when we go deep into the roots, and when we take the time to figure out what drives our actions, we find that those tiny things that seem so insignificant sometimes make all the difference. That they have the power to provide a foundation of beauty from which we can carve our own version of the good life. Tiny things,like taking a deep breath or figuring out what we really want to drink in the morning, when practiced with intention, have the power to give life like nothing else can. It’s not about chasing happiness or climbing the ladder to what someone else has defined as success. It’s about noticing, feeling, claiming, and sometimes letting go of the things we think will bring us contentment and satisfaction.

Tiny things? I suggest just trying some on. Just start, as it were. You might be surprised what fits.